


The Price and Currencies of Victory

by lexidafree



Series: Of Price and Currency [2]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-14
Updated: 2017-11-11
Packaged: 2019-01-17 02:32:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12355650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lexidafree/pseuds/lexidafree
Summary: It had taken his life, his country, his throne and worst of all his name.He was left trapped and alone in the dark with monsters biting at his heels. The Puzzle had given him two options; be consumed or overcome. He’d chosen the latter.Sequel to 'The Price and Currencies of Losing'.The King is free and he is here to conquer.





	1. Rising of the King

To feel so whole after being so empty was the world’s greatest transition.

He’d felt it the moment the other half of his soul, his _Bâ_ , had touched the Puzzle. With each piece put into place, more of his senses returned to him and he was able to see and hear and learn more about the world in which he was finally able to return to.

He ‘experienced’, for lack of a better word, through his other half. Through ‘Yugi’. When Yugi worked on the Puzzle, when he spoke about his day, he could see flashes of images, memories. The more he completed it, the more he could see through his eyes and the more he learnt about his future host.

Lifetimes ago, when he had been sealed away he’d felt the worst kind of lurch in his life. He’d felt himself ripped in half. At first, the concept was not as alarming as one might think it should be. He’d known since he was a boy how death worked - he was a well educated individual after all. When he died his _Ka_ and _Bâ_ would leave his body, then if all went well they would be reunited together in the afterlife and he would become an all powerful _Akh_.

In theory, this should have all still taken place despite him being sealed inside the Puzzle. It had been his sacrifice, to know that he could never rule on in the afterlife with his father and fellow kings. However, he’d known upon sealing himself that eventually he would return to the mortal realm, to conquer and to rule there instead.

Needless to say, things had not gone to plan. He’d been betrayed and he had been trapped in his tomb and in the Puzzle as only half a man, half a soul, with that thing he’d sealed himself with lurking and stalking him in the shadows of the maze.

Those bastards….they’d had one job!

However, he’d had more than enough time to fester and brood and though he was still furious at the turn of events, he could see what the Gods were playing at. This way, when his _Bâ_ did complete the Puzzle they would combine together at last and he would become a perfect being, ready to take on the mortal realm.

This at least, had been his original theory. However, the more he learnt about Yugi the more he wasn’t so sure. The boy had developed far more of his own personality and was a much more complete person than he thought he should have been. He was the _Bâ_ he’d theorised, he was technically the personality, but…it was clear...that the Bâ had adapted to save itself. Yugi had become an entirely different entity from him, his own self. Without need of him….

He wasn’t sure how to feel about this, the longer he dwelled upon it the worse he felt. He sat upon his granite throne inside the Puzzle, feeling Yugi piece his world back together slowly. It would be difficult, he pondered, for a soulless puppet to assemble and crack the Puzzle. Nevertheless....it left him feeling strangely empty, not to mention extremely apprehensive.

It had all gone so wrong, he’d lost far more than he had gained. That was the nature of sacrifice he supposed. He’d known since he was a boy, bound in chains and beaten to within an inch of death; that life wasn’t fair. He’d gambled on the power and the mercy of the Puzzle, without fully understanding it and it had burned him for his arrogance.

It had taken his life, his country, his throne and worst of all…. his name. He was left trapped and alone in the dark with monsters biting at his heels. The Puzzle had given him two options; be consumed or overcome. He’d chosen the later.

The shadows and the creatures that dwelled within it cowered before his presence and the intensity of his soul. His sacrifices too great and his rage unbowed. The flames of his spirit left unchecked he had become a ruler of a different sort and he had conquered and tamed. He had challenged the Puzzle and he had triumphed.

Tendrils of shadows licked at his ankles drawing his attention back to the present. He focused on the memories Yugi was showing him, images of teenagers, of pretty girls and cruel boys. He clenched his fingers. Yugi was kind and merciful, the opposite of himself in every way. In some ways, Yugi reminded him of himself in his younger years, when he’d dreamed of being a kind and merciful king sitting at his father’s knee. He had been very young then...young and naive.

By the time he was five summers old he knew he could not afford to be that way. Not when the world was far too cruel for those kinds of people to thrive. They were culled by the shrewd and the cunning.

If he hadn’t known better, he would have assumed that his other half had never had to encounter these heathens. Unfortunately, he’d seen otherwise. Yugi had been stomped, pushed and crushed his entire life. But in spite of all that, he remained as benevolent and forgiving as he always had. His enemies could get away with murder it seemed.

His _Bâ_ had adapted to save itself, it had managed to survive on pure grit. In many ways, that was an extremely commendable feat. It had grown and morphed into an almost complete being. Almost.

The king leaned back on his throne and felt his _Bâ’s_ presence overwhelm him. It had done all that for the slim chance of finding its other half once again. Of finding him again….

His _Bâ_ , his Yugi had endured enough...soon they would be together, be complete once more and all who had opposed him would kneel before them.

A smile grew on his lips and his teeth flashed in the gloom.

 

☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥

Yugi was exhausted. It took everything he had just to push the Kame Game Shop door open. Climbing the stairs felt like climbing Mount Fuji. Seriously, where did these jerks get their energy? Then again, he might have more energy if he spent nearly as much time fighting as he did hunched over playing games.

He’d probably get fitter, he thought as he slowly eased himself into his desk chair. Anzu had told him constantly that if he actually put up a bit of a fight he wouldn’t get in as much trouble. She meant it in the best possible way and he knew she practiced what she preached. She was a strong, fierce person with enough pride for both of them. Yugi was honored to call her his friend. He was a little jealous of her nerve nonetheless.

Yugi tenderly pulled out his puzzle box from its place in his bag, he smiled wearily at it, just looking at it eased the tension in his shoulders. Slowly he plucked out the pieces and set to work.

Yugi was fully aware that these people did not deserve his sympathy. But whenever he pictured them hurt, bruised or bleeding it made him feel terrible. He didn’t understand how Jou and Honda could do it….didn’t they feel awful when they punched people? Yugi could just picture them cradled in their mother's arms as babies or young children...it was enough to make him sick sometimes.

It wasn’t as if Yugi liked these people or anything. Just...no. But at the same time, he didn’t feel the need to torture them either. He’d rather just avoid them entirely.

Maybe he was just spoilt. Slowly he clicked more pieces of the puzzle into place. That’s what Jou told him, life had spoiled him by giving him that option. He could see that he supposed...He had a loving family, a warm bed, a place to call home...he had no need to fight for his right to live...click...click.

Of course this knowledge didn’t really do much to get rid of the cramps in his stomach when he’d lurched up his lunch an hour ago. Whether this was caused by the running or from the kicks in the gut he wasn’t sure. Ushio was such a jerk….click.

Speaking of which...said jerk had demanded money...protection money no less. Stating that beating up Jou and Honda deserved payment.... Click. Click. He was such a coward.

His weakness had gotten two innocent people hurt, if he had just dealt with it himself earlier maybe none of this would have happened…

And now here he was, sitting around like Lord Muck, playing with his puzzle ...cause that was sure to be super helpful.

“Ugh!” He threw his hands away in frustration, “what am I going to do?”

He could feel his bottom lip sag pitifully and tears welling up in his eyes. Dejectedly he gazed at the puzzle. It was way more complete than it had ever been before, he perked up slightly. It was almost done...maybe he could finish it tonight!

With a sudden spike of energy he cautiously started placing more and more pieces. It seemed to be going together easier than it had been before…

“Hahah! One more piece! Oh my god, one more..” He reached into the puzzle box to pull out the last piece, the final centre design. His fingers gropped nothing but air, his heart stopped.

“Huh,” he placed the puzzle back down and loomed over the puzzle box, desperately searching for the elusive piece. “Where did it go? Oh no, did I lose it? I swear I’ve even seen that piece!”

Yugi flopped back down onto his chair in defeat. Of course, of course it was gone. The tears were back again. Now he couldn’t even finish it, the one thing that had brought him the most joy all this time. Forever to remain incomplete.

Yugi heard the door to his room quietly creak open and his Grandfather's soft, gruff voice speak.

“Yugi, I have something of yours.”

 

☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥

It burned….Oh god it burned...Make it stop...please make it stop…..He was one fire...he skin...it was melting...everything hurt….make it stop!

_No._

No?

_We will be perfect, we will be free...together…_

But it hurts!

_It will, yes, it will hurt. But we will hurt others…_

Others? No, no don’t hur-

_Yes...Others will hurt._

Who are you? Where are you? It's...so….dark…

_Dark indeed…._

☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥

 

When he finally rose, Yugi’s room was pitch black. The light on his desk had been extinguished, as all lights had been. He stood at last in human form, well, more than human. His limbs were again made of flesh and bone, he could breathe and smell and taste….at long, long last. But he was so much more than mortal.

He grinned, breathing in the cool night air. Yugi. It was all thanks to his Yugi...he could still feel his presence in his mind, if he focused he could picture Yugi curled up in his soul room, he had seen a glimpse of it when he’d finally escaped his own maze like prison. It had felt like standing in the warm sun after years of frigid winter. Bliss.

Yugi’s room had spilled over with light and warmth, toys and soft things littered the floor. It had been a small, lovely and charming room. It made him smile wistfully...his own room, was twisted, vast and dark.

Dark.

Yugi had asked who he was, he had not been able to answer with a name. It had been lost...sacrificed….but maybe, maybe now, in this new life, this new body he would have a new one? Dark...Darkness...Yami?

Yami forced himself back to the mortal realm and the body he now possessed, feeling more at ease now that he had something to call himself. There were more pressing matters to attend to first. This vessel was now a container of two souls and as such it had been forced to split and twist itself in order to accommodate his soul room, which was considerably larger than any normal humans, let alone Yugi’s. He could feel it straining to adapt, but it was accommodating him as he knew it would.

Yami walked slowly towards the full length mirror at the end of Yugi’s bed and gazed at his new reflection. The spirit remembered what he looked like before, his strong sense of self was part of the reason he had survived. Yugi’s body could only do so much however, it had morphed to fit him, but still it took on many of Yugi’s features, it had to. His skin, his nose and a little of his height. None of those were familiar to him.

Yugi may be vastly more developed than he had originally anticipated, but being only half a soul, a _Bâ_ , had left its mark. There were some things that his magic could change and others so ingrained in Yugi’s biology that he could not undo without serious effort. When Yami had taken over, he had been able to finally assess the damage.

The _Bâ_ had done all it could to ensure its survival, but Yugi’s body had taken the brunt of short falls. It had a number of defects in it that had been present from birth, ones that would have continued to affect him as he grew. The spirit frowned and focused his energy. These were things he could fix, but it would take many years to be fully resolved. His poor little _Bâ_...it had worked so hard.

Now, it was his turn.

Yami stretched his arms forward, he felt the muscles pull and contract and the bones creak in protest, still adjusting to the sudden change. He focused his powers, his all seeing eye appeared on his forehead. Yami searched Yugi’s memories for his first mission.

Ushio.


	2. The King Hunts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Please be aware that this chapter contains foul language and derogatory terms. I do not condone the use of these words/terms. This character is an asshole and thus talks like one, so please be aware. Reader discretion is advised!

Who, did that little shit think he was? Was that fucking midget actually suicidal?

Ushio had been out, minding his own goddamn business when his phone had rung. Expected it to be one of the guys, he’d answered without even looking.

“How’d the run go, boys? Get everything I told you to?”

“Hello, Ushio.” An unfamiliar voice purred down the line. The perverse pleasure in the voice immediately made him sick. Who the fuck was this faggot?

“Who the fuck is this?” He bellowed down the phone, he swore if some rival gang gave his number out to another tranny hooker he was actually going to murder someone.

“It’s me, Yugi. Meet me in front of the school in five minutes. I have what you need, I’ll be waiting.” The call was then cut off and Ushio was left even more angry and confused than he had been before.

Yugi? The fuck that was Yugi...no fucking way! That little turd could barely string two sentences together without stuttering, let alone call him out!

He stared down at his phone, gripping it tightly in his mammoth fist. Had that voice even sounded remotely like Yugi’s? It wasn’t like he could pick the kid’s voice out in a crowd or anything...and the pitch hadn’t totally ruled him out. But the tone had been completely wrong. No way Yugi had the balls to talk to him that way. Heck, Mazaki had more balls than that little retard! Heh, maybe they’d traded them at the tranny bar!

He grinned, who ever was at the school waiting for him, it didn’t matter. He was always ready to show some bitches who was boss.

☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥

When Ushio arrived at the school gates, he was slightly disgruntled to note that had arrived exactly on time. Usually, he made a supreme effort to be fashionably late to these sort of things, gave the other guy time to sweat. Also, like fuck he was going to take orders from that goth wannabe, that little bitch barely came up to his kneecaps!

However, despite him even taking the long way round the park, the detour hadn’t delayed him in the slightest. He pulled his coat up higher on his shoulders and re-popped his collar. He had to ensure he looked as big as possible after all, it might not be all that necessary in a fight with Yugi ‘I’m so short kittens trip over me’ Mutou, but it was part of his ritual. Walking through the gates he started looking around for his caller.

“Yo, I’m glad to see you made it on time,” a voice drifted past his ear, seemingly carried on the biting wind. He spun around to see none other than Yugi Mutou, sitting elegantly on an old wooden pommel horse.

Holy shit...it actually had been him!

Ushio narrowed his eyes to adjust to the gloom. It certainly looked like Yugi at first glance, the hair alone was a dead give away. But there was definitely something off about him. Firstly, his fashion sense seemed to have gotten even worse - if that was possible. The punk had now included some Egyptian whosie whatsits on his wrists and he had apparently doused himself in the skin of a thousand cows for all the leather he was wearing.

“What brings you here at this hour, punk? You got my money? Can’t say I like the choice of outfit but I’ll forgive you if you hand over your dues now.” He grinned condescendingly down at Yugi. Despite the kid sitting on the pommel horse, he had no hope of catching up to Ushio’s massive height.

Yugi, however, did not seem to be at all intimidated like he normally would have been. Instead he smiled back, a perverse grin far too large for his face. Ushio watched with trepidation as Yugi reached into his coat pocket.

“I do have your money, I hope you don’t mind but I decided I’d double it.” Yugi pulled out a wad of cash from his coat pocket and briskly flicked through it, like the amount was inconsequential to him.

“Double?!” Ushio spluttered. Like he’d make a big deal about double, he should have started pushing this kid months ago! He had no idea Yugi’s family was loaded! He’d thought Yugi’s Grandfather owned that ratty, old game shop a few streets away. Who knew it brought in that kind of dough!

“But handing over this much would be boring,” Yugi’s smooth voice drawled, breaking Ushio out of his stupor. “I think it can be made much more interesting…”

“Hey, you giving me this money or not? I’ll take it by force punk, don’t you doubt it!” Ushio growled, he couldn’t just tease him with that kind of money! He could buy that bike he’d seen in that magazine last week!

“I will give you this money...if you can win it from me,” Yugi’s grin stretched even further and his teeth caught the light in an ominous way.

“Win? Kid, I don’t know how to break this to you, but you’d be lucky to beat a dwarf in arm wrestle! You and I are just in two different leagues! Tell you what, you hand over that money now and I won't break your kneecaps!” Ushio barked in laughter. But Yugi still showed no signs that he was actually signing his own death warrant. Instead, he looked like a tiger lazily playing with his food.

“A fist fight would be dull as well. We shall play a game. The winner will walk away with the money and the moral high ground. A game shows far greater mental and physical fortitude than simply beating each other black and blue, wouldn’t you say?”

Ushio stared at Yugi and came to the conclusion that this couldn’t be the real Yugi. Did the kid have a twin? A freaky, evil conjoined twin that had been imprisoned in the attic for the safety of all mankind? Did it finally get loose and eat the other Yugi or something?

He snorted, it didn’t matter if this was Yugi or Yugi’s third cousin twice removed. This kid had money and Ushio was willing to overlook everything to get his hands on it.

“Whatever, punk! I have never lost a game in my life! What you got in mind, squirt? Wanna play hang man?” Ushio chortled. This was the dumbest thing he’d ever heard. Did this little retard really think he was going to get out of this without a beating?

“We’ll only need two things,” the strange Yugi continued as if Ushio had never spoken. “The money, which I have, and the knife you have hidden in your pocket.” Crimson eyes flashed in the night and Ushio had to think back to what to colour Yugi’s eyes were...not that he made a point of staring into people's eyes or whatever… but he was pretty damn sure that they weren’t red...who had red eyes anyway? Probably contacts, to match his stupid goth outfit.

Grimacing, Ushio pulled the knife out of his coat pocket. Had it been sticking out? Is that the reason the freak had known he’d had it? Yugi elegantly stretched out his small hand to accept the blade. As if in a trance Ushio watched in horror as he found himself handing it over without any preamble.

Yugi gracefully leaped off the pommel horse, stepping behind it to use it as a table. “The rules are simple; we each take turns placing the money on the back of our hands, like so,” Yugi balanced the large wad of money on the back of his hand and raised the knife above the money. “Then we stab the money and see how much we take. The winner is the one with the most money at the end. Sound simple enough?” Yugi raised his gaze to meet Ushio’s and he felt a shiver run down his spine. Ushio desperately wanted to avert his eyes, but his pride kept him strong.

“Heh, so it’s just a test of courage!” No big deal, he could totally do that, he’d been stabbed before, sure it smarted a little but it wasn’t that bad! He knew for a fact that Yugi had never been in a proper fight before in his life! He had this in the bag.

Just as Ushio had began to relax and regain his nerve Yugi was suddenly in his face again, leaning on the pommel horse to get as close to his face as possible. He mentally berated himself as felt himself flinch. He hadn’t even seen the kid move!

“But I must warn you, this is a very particular kind of game, if you break the rules a punishment will be inflicted upon you. A penalty game will decide your fate!” Yugi’s voice dripped with glee and excitement, as if he couldn’t wait for that to happen. Ushio did his best to shrug it off.

“Heh, interesting...let's get started then!”

A quick mini game of jan-ken decided whom would go first; Yugi won with paper and took back his position behind the pommel horse. He place the money atop his hand and raised the knife above it. He hesitated for only a moment before taking a stab.

A sickening crunch was the only sound to be heard in the empty school yard.

“Phew, didn’t even get ten bills, thought I’d put too much strength behind that one, but they are hard to stab,” Yugi exclaimed with glee. He seemed to be enjoying himself far too much considering the game they were playing. He had a large cheerful grin, but it did nothing to ease Ushio’s shudder when Yugi handed him the knife for his turn.

Ushio placed the money on his hand as Yugi had done and raised the knife. Immediately he felt a pull, like the knife was far heavier than he knew it was. Like the money and the knife and a magnetic connection. Seemingly without instruction his arm began to lower, he could hear Yugi talking at him but it was taking everything he had to slow down. “Shut up!” He roared in the kid’s direction, he couldn’t give two shits what the little freak was talking about.

Despite his best efforts he stabbed far harder than he had intended, so hard he felt for sure he’d grazed the back of his hand with the tip of the blade. But when he pulled back there was no blood. Only money.

“Ha! Look at that! Ten thousand yen and not a mark on me! I should have stabbed harder!” Reluctantly, Ushio handed the knife back to Yugi, the sooner Yugi had his turn, the sooner it would be his again! A small voice in his head asked him why he was playing the game at all, but it was drowned out by his heavy breathing and pounding heart.

“Heheh, not bad,” Yugi’s smooth voice echo in the quiet emptiness of the yard, somehow it was both soothing and threatening. “But I think you’ll find your desires harder to control with each turn you take…” Yugi finished ominously as he stabbed at the back of his hand without hesitation, staring unblinkingly at Ushio as he did so.

The knife went back and forth between them for the next few exchanges, each one quickly and quietly finishing their turns, each getting faster as they progressed. There was a small spike of adrenaline and dread that ran in tandem through Ushio’s body. The fear of the knife as his hand trembled beneath it and the thrill of the reward as he pulled it away. He was obsessed, he wanted it to never end, it consumed all his thoughts. He just wanted the knife in his hand again.

But eventually, the balance tipped and Ushio made a grave a discovery. His strength had been building as the pile of cash had dwindled. He found his arm was overriding his brain more and more and he saw visions of his hand impaled with his own blade. His arm shook with how intensely he was gripping the handle, his biceps pulled taut ready for the strike.

 _'Shit'_ , he thought, ' _I can’t control it...I can’t relax my arm!_ ’ Ushio’s mind was filled with money and blood. All he wanted was the god damn money! He didn’t need any of this bullshit!

Suddenly, a thought struck him in the face like a bucket of ice water. He had the knife and Yugi had nothing.

Fuck!

His eyes shot up from the money for the first time in a long while to stare intensely at Yugi, who still stood there calm as day with a small, perverse smile playing on his lips. Waiting.

There was a way for Ushio to get what he wanted, there was alway a way. He couldn’t believe he’d let himself get suckered in for so long. There was definitely something hypnotic about Yugi...this version Yugi. Whoever this kid thought he was...it wouldn’t matter for much longer now.

“Hey Yugi, I think I’m going to win…” Ushio stated quietly, still staring at Yugi like a hunter eyeing his prey.

Yugi said nothing but his smile grew further.

“You let me hold this knife!! That’s why you lose! DIE!” He screamed with all his gut and lunged at Yugi with all his might.

☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥

Yami had been waiting, the shadows had done their work and exposed Ushio's true nature without restraint. He watched the blade come towards him with a great sense of joy and satisfaction. He waited until the final moments to pull away, the thrill of battle raced through his new body. He had not known the feel of a heart beat in so long.

“I knew you wouldn’t be able to follow the rules…” Yami said. He felt his Third Eye open upon his forehead and a whole new world was exposed to him as Ushio spluttered uselessly before him. He saw the swirls of the shadows dance around his victim and his vitals were bared to him.

Time to finish this.

“This is only seen by those who ‘trespass on my soul’!” He bellowed into the night “You have hurt my _Ba_  and taken his money, what a fool…” Yami raised his hand and pointed his finger in judgement. “You shall pay for you transgressions… with a penalty game!” He allowed for his voice to echo around the space, he wanted his voice to be the last thing this pathetic waste of a man ever heard.

Gazing with his Third Eye he saw a clear path for Ushio’s heart and began to reach for it, with every intent to rip it out and crush it in his face. His finger slipped through Ushio's flesh and he heard him scream in agony. Paralyzed with fear it was all he could do. He wrapped his fingers delicately around the frantically beating organ and began to squeeze, relishing as he felt the body before him spasm in an effort to save itself.

However, as he began to pull, he felt something heave in his gut. Yami frowned as he looked down at his own body as it too began to shake, his stomach lurched like it was trying retch up Yugi’s last meal. A distant voice in another part of his mind was screaming...Yugi.

His Third Eye still open and his hand still gripping a man’s still beating heart he cast his eyes inwards into their shared mind spaces, desperately searching for what the problem was. Last he’d checked his host had been asleep, the body unable to support both of them conscious just yet.

Even with his immense focus, it was a stretch of his mental fortitude to be able to enter their soul rooms while he judged.

Banging the door to Yugi’s soul room open, he couldn’t even enjoy the usual warmth the room provided. He didn’t have time. His eyes quickly scanned the room, only to find Yugi right where he had left him...completely unconscious and unaware of the events.

So why was the body reacting this way?!

With the strain too much, Yami launched himself back into reality and returned to the task at hand. Still, the body wracked itself with intense shakes and nausea. The message slowly dawned on him. It refused to pull Ushio’s heart from his chest.

Yami let go and let his fingers slip back out of Ushio’s body, the gate of shadows slowly closing around them. Ushio’s body continued to tremble, drool spilling from his mouth as he stared blindly up at the heavens.

Yugi’s body had betrayed him. It had accepted him into it’s flesh, but it was too ingrained with Yugi’s personality. It would not...or could not perform the task of murder.

Fine then.

There were other ways to punish.

He refocused his Third Eye back to his victim and changed his target. If he could not take his heart, he would take his mind instead.

“Illusion of Avarice!” He called, and the shadows responded. They entered Ushio’s mind with ease and destroying it beyond repair.

Ushio’s screams echoed through the night before being swallowed and replaced for peals of madness induced laughter.

Yami walked away from the scene, silently fuming in frustration.

He had not expected Yugi’s body to react so violently after it had welcomed him so warmly before. He looked down as his hand...at Yugi’s hand...even now he could feel the body accepting him and embracing him. Casting his senses back he could still feel Yugi in his soul room, still asleep and still none the wiser.

He clenched the hand shut.

Apparently, there was only so far he could push this body. His _Bâ_ had developed far beyond what he thought possible of half a soul. In spite of all the odds Yugi’s sense of self was almost as strong as his. Even unconscious his character and morals penetrated every fiber of his being.

Despite his frustration, part of Yami glowed with pride at his little _Bâ_. So little, but so firm!

However, he could not allow for that rejection to occur again, especially whilst in the middle of a battle. If he had been a lesser man it might have caused them to both be consumed. The shadows where like ill trained dogs and would happily bite the hand that fed them if given the chance.

The sooner he could communicate with Yugi the better.

Yugi’s house came into view and Yami quickened his pace to enter the premises. Yes, soon he and his _Bâ_ would have to be reunited properly and be one in mind, soul and body.

Yes, he grinned and allowed himself a short moment to bask in the light of Yugi’s mind.

But first….he needed to deal with Solomon.

 

☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥ - ☥

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ushio was an asshole...but damn he was fun to write!

**Author's Note:**

> My understanding of Ancient Egyptian lore and religion is not great. I did a whole bunch of research before I started this, but I'm not sure my grasp of it is 110%...Please excuse me, I did try. 
> 
> I am glad to be writing this story again, I hope to have more chapters up soon. If you have any thoughts or theories I would love to hear them! Please let me know what you think in the comments below! :)


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